Interior wallboard, exterior building sheathing, and roofing panels can be exposed to extreme environmental conditions including moisture, wind, and extreme temperatures during and after construction. Additionally, such systems may be installed improperly, such that seams between panels are not completely sealed. Furthermore, sheathing and roofing panels installed around windows, scuppers, parapet walls, and other openings and areas in the building may be particularly vulnerable to environmental damage.
When moisture intrusion and/or degradation or destruction of the panels occurs due to these conditions, it often goes unnoticed for a length of time, usually until visually observed. Moreover, leaks and/or degradation that may not be visible via typical inspection methods may never be detected. Thus, such damage conditions, as well as mold and mildew resulting from water infiltration, may intensify to easily avoidable levels because of the lack of early detection systems for these issues.
For example, in environments exposed to freezing temperatures, water leaking into a gypsum roofing or sheathing panel may undergo multiple freeze-thaw cycles and thereby cause separation of the gypsum core and the fiberglass mat facer and associated membrane (e.g., building wrap), if present. Once separation of the mat facer has occurred, wind uplifting causes further separation of the mat facer, sometimes resulting in billowing of the mat facer.
Accordingly, it would be desirable to provide gypsum panels having sensors for detecting environmental conditions in or on the gypsum panel, to monitor and prevent damage to such panels.